The Makings of a Resolution
by Neamh
Summary: [Brucas]“Charleston,” she repeats softly and he can feel his heart breaking. Lucas is surprised when she reaches out and takes his hand back in hers. “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”
1. It's a Start

_Absence sharpens love, presence strengthens it._

_English Proverb _

**The Makings of a Resolution**

HE FINDS HER at the brand new Starbucks at the edge of town, knowing full well the reason she's there is for the anonymous setting it offers to her. She's sitting in the booth in the back corner with her English and French books scattered on the table and her gaze lingering anywhere but the books before her.

Brooke's never looked more beautiful in this moment.

He knows he regrets hurting her in these past couple weeks, but he'll never regret the time her spent with her. Brooke Davis is an enigma, he muses slowly making his way towards her table. She wears a carefully constructed mask to protect herself, surviving this far.

But Lucas wants to see more of the girl underneath.

He's seen her before.

The _real_ Brooke Davis loves English Literature and manages an A in AP French, an impossible feat for anyone with Madame Cunningham. He wants to see the dancer and the laugher and the girl who swears up and down that the BBC's version of Pride and Prejudice is a brilliant movie.

But he can't.

He lost his chance.

He lost his chance to be with the girl that he's hopelessly in love with. He let her down.

That's why Charleston seems to be such a good idea.

He could _come_ back a better person.

For Brooke.

"Lucas?"

Brooke's coffee-colored eyes are wide with surprise.

"Lucas, what are you doing here?"

He swallows nervously. "Can I sit?"

"I— um, sure," she murmurs. He watches as she reaches over and shuts her books. He wants to tell her not to because it's as if she's hiding herself from the rest of the world. But he's just as guilty of making her hide herself as well.

"So," she states softly. Brooke stares straight ahead and Lucas silently wishes for her to meet his gaze.

"I've screwed up haven't I?"

She laughs softly. "At least we finally agree on something, handsome."

"Brooke..."

"Look Lucas," she cuts him off. "I don't know how or why you found me. But I came here to get away from the drama, _not to be followed by it_."

"Maria," he responds quietly. "Your housekeeper."

Brooke's eyes close and she curses under her breath.

"Brooke," he tries again. "You have every right not to talk to me. But if you just hear me out for a moment..."

She leans back, a strand of hair falls into her eyes and his fingers itch to push back. She says nothing, but sighs, which he takes a signal to go on.

"I'm leaving Tree Hill."

Her eyes widen. "What?"

"I'm leaving Tree Hill," he repeats louder this time, carefully searching her guarded expression as it began to waver.

"Does Peyton know?" She responds finally. He watches as she begins to fumble with her pen cap and wonders if there was a double-meaning to her question.

"Not yet. Just Keith and my mom."

Brooke swallows and then shifts. Her lips tremble. "Why... why are you telling me this?"

"Because I have to." _Because I want to_, he adds silently.

She looks at him in surprise. "Lucas, you don't owe me anything."

He shakes his head and takes advantage of her surprise, taking her hand in his and gently rubbing his thumb against her palm.

"Luke..."

"I owe you a lot Brooke," he cuts her off. "This is—"

She wrenches her hand out of his grasp. The intensity of the loss of contact is overwhelming, so much so that he has to struggle to find words to speak again. But Brooke's faster.

"If you think that telling me that you're leaving Tree Hill is your twisted _solution_ of handling things—"

"I'm leaving, Brooke," he cuts her off, slamming his hand on the table. "I'm leaving because if I stay _things will get worse_."

She's silent and he continues looking away.

"I can't stay in a place, where me not knowing how to handle things are making people's lives worse. I need a fresh start. I need to find the person that I've lost."

She says nothing, but he can feel her gaze burning into him as if she's searching for a motive beyond what he's just revealed to her.

"Where?" She asks finally.

"Charleston." He watches her carefully.

"Charleston," she repeats softly and he can feel his heart breaking. Lucas is surprised when she reaches out and takes his hand back in hers. "I hope you find what you're looking for."

He watches in amazement as her lips curl into the faintest of smiles, but a smile nonetheless.

"I will," he answers. "As long as there's something to come back to."

Brooke nods slowly and he realizes that this is a start, a start of what to look forward to.

_Finished._

**A/N**: I took a little creative licensing with this one. I loved Brooke and Lucas, as you can tell, and I'm hoping that the two of them have some sort of resolution in the second season. Or at least there's some angsty unresolved tension that I can use for fanfiction. Remember reviews make the author very happy, so use that button.


	2. What do you have to lose?

_I don't believe that anybody feels  
the way I do about you now..._

_And all the roads we have to walk are winding  
and all the lights that lead us there are blinding  
there are many things that I would  
like to say to you  
but I don't know how..._

_Oasis, Wonderwall_

__

**The Makings of a Resolution**

THROUGH OUT THE COURSE OF HER LIFE Brooke had learned to mold herself to fit certain people's expectations. It had become more of a survival instinct really.

Women in the Davis family were famous for being elegantly vicious, but with unique personality quirks. So she spoke fluent French and was nearing the tenth anniversary of her study of classical ballet, all the while still maintain a place atop the social ladder. Her mother, the bitch extraordinaire, was a former cheerleader and her father was never less than perfect in school. So she took gymnastics and joined the cheerleading squad, becoming captain in honor of her mother. In keeping with tradition she never missed the honor roll, but appealed to her mother's side and didn't do the grade bragging.

She had a new boyfriend every week and when sex became an addiction, it became a tireless routine. She knew what they said about her at school. There were the old, personal favorites like _Brooke Davis the slut_ and _Brooke Davis the relationship-wrecker_.

But no one knew who Brook Davis was.

Not until Peyton.

Not until Lucas.

Peyton appealed to the much darker, self-destructive side of herself. Peyton has seen the very best of her worst from the drinking binges to the sex and seemed to literally _thrive _on it. She was the "bad" good girl to Brooke's vicious bad girl.

And it wasn't until that fateful night after the disastrous Duke Party that she began to really see things.

Lucas Scott had nearly been her absolution.

It scared her how willing she was to reveal things, secrets about herself that no one knew to him. From her love of Jane Austen to her obsession with strawberry ice cream and chocolate sauce, Lucas managed to unearth things about herself that not even _she knew_. He knew how desperately alone she felt every time she came home to an empty house. He knew about her disappearing affections for her parents and how ready and willing she was to start over.

He also knew that she could be broken.

Peyton knew how breakable she was.

There are no words that could do a description justice of the feelings and what happened between the three of them all those weeks ago. All Brooke knew is that she will never be the same girl again.

She probably will never be.

"Chiquita!"

Brooke's startled out of her musings by Maria, her housekeeper and nanny. The closest person to a parent she's ever had.

"Sorry," she muttered, frowning at the doodles she's made all over her French study guide. _Thank god school's almost over... I think I'm going crazy._

Maria's gaze softens. "That nice boy that stopped her last week is on the telephone."

_Lucas?_ Her eyes widen and she flashes back to a conversation that she had with Peyton earlier in the day.

_He comes alive when he's around you. And you, god Brooke, I've never seen you so... vibrant. You literally light up the room when you see him._

She sighed. So Peyton had really been trying to form some sort of an apology mixed with permission to start seeing Lucas again...

Brooke smiled at Maria and took the cordless phone from her hand. "Can't find someone in Charleston good enough to have a heart to heart with you, handsome?"

Lucas laughed and she could have sworn her heart started beating several thousand seconds faster. "I can only take so much of Keith's manly bonding talks, gorgeous."

"Ah, the grunt and beer bonding," she teased, resuming her doodling on her study guide. "And I see I've graduated to a new nickname."

"Well it's the truth. You've never been less than gorgeous to me."

Brooke found herself unable to fight the blush rising to her cheeks. Only Lucas Scott had the talent of making her into a puddle of goo.

"Brooke?"

She jumped. "Sorry," she apologized. "I'm on a completely different planet today."

"Am I interrupting anything?"

She chuckled at his worry. A smile formed on her lips, the first genuine smile in what felt like decades. "Other than my sorry-assed attempts to study for my AP French exam? Not really."

"Ouch," Lucas replied. "I forgot they do AP testing after finals. You should worry though. French is supposed to second nature to you. At least that's what it seems like."

Her eyes narrow and she can't help but feel slightly suspicious of his phone call. It's not that she's not happy to hear from him, but between Peyton and even to a certain extent, Haley's civility increase... Brooke knew something was up.

"All right, handsome," she murmured. "I know we broke some metaphorical walls down and all, but what's _really_ going on?"

He was silent for a moment and Brooke found herself worrying that this was just some plot of his to rid himself of his guilt in breaking her heart. What was left of it anyway.

"I want you to trust me," he spoke finally. "I want to start over and have a _real_ relationship with you, but I want to do this the right way."

It was starting again, she realized. The pure, unadulterated fear of placing her trust, her heart, in someone with the potential to destroy her. The difference this time was she knew she would have to offer all of herself, the masks between Lucas and her were practically non-existent. He knew her. He knew the girl who had carefully spent years of building walls around her heart.

Brooke looked down and realized she was trembling violently, the ink of her pen bleeding deeply into her papers.

She was taking a huge risk.

For all she knew, they could just be fancy words coming out of his mouth.

"I talked to Peyton today," she spoke finally. She listened to Lucas sigh nervously and blurted out, "And it was good... Awkward, but good."

"I'm glad," he responded quietly.

She knows what he's implying even before he says it. "Peyton and I aren't the same kind of best friends you and Tutor-girl are."

"Brooke—"

"No Lucas," she interrupts. "I want to clear up any illusions you have of the relationship I share with Peyton. I'm going to trust you with the truth."

She lets the words settle between them and the shifts in her chair before continuing. "Pey and I met each other in some pretty dark times. She had grown up too fast and I was _growing up_ to fast. We complimented each other's destructive natures and it was falling... too fast, too soon."

_And didn't care in the slightest_, she added silently.

"I always thought that you guys were close."

She shrugged. "We are in our own twisted way, I suppose. Just don't blame yourself too much for what happened between Peyton and I. It was going to happen eventually."

"That's what she said," he responded.

She wasn't surprised, but felt the familiar feelings that had haunted her in this scenario before. Jealousy was an ugly feeling.

"Did you? Is— Is that why she came up to me in the library today?"

"I just—"

"Wanted to help," she finished with a frustrated sigh. She closed her eyes. "There are three categories of friends, handsome. There are those that are the "in the moment" friends... the ones you'll never speak to after high school or have some awkward run in several years later. There are the friends that do nothing but make you miserable. And then there are the friends like you and Tutor-girl, genuine friends... Pey and I are the unconventional, we will never fit into any of those groups."

Brooke tried to control the whirlwind of emotions that were fighting to overwhelm her.

"I'm sorry."

"We keep apologizing to each other every time we talk, handsome," she paused. _Maybe..._ "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Brooke," Lucas began to argue.

"I'm serious, Lucas," she cut him off. "We literally had a crash and burn relationship and we've— We've only shown each other _glimpses_ of—"

"And I'm serious Brooke."

She couldn't tell whether or not he was fighting desperation or embracing frustration. She herself was struggling with both. An uneasy silence fell between them.

"I want you to come to Charleston," he blurted out.

Her eyes widened and she nearly fell out of her chair. _What?_ "Charleston," she echoed dazedly.

"After your exams," Lucas finished, confidence in his voice ringing clearly. "For a couple days, a week even. Please Brooke... What do you have to lose?"

Her heart hammered in her chest.

_Everything._

_I could lose everything._

"All right," she relented calmly. She was surprised at the strength of her control. "I'll go."

Bur her hands couldn't stop trembling.

_TBC_

**A/N:** I didn't honestly expect to continue The Makings of a Resolution. I had originally intended it to be just a one part fic. But then I watched the rerun of _To Wish Impossible Things_ this week and I knew I couldn't, especially with the positive feedback I was getting _and _the return of OTH in two weeks. So thanks guys for all the lovely reviews and do keep them coming!


	3. She's that Girl

_I know there's a word for this  
I know there's a word for the way I'm feeling  
I know there's a word for this  
I know it, and it's on the tip of my tongue  
And it won't go any further._

_I Know There's a Word for This, Aimee Mann_

**The Makings of a Resolution **

THE SOUND OF GLASS BREAKING rang through the small apartment as Keith stared at Lucas in a mixture of shock and anger. Lucas sighed and began to rustle through one of the plastic supermarket bags filled with cleaning supplies to take care of the mess on the floor.

"You've gotta be kidding me, kid."

"Keith..." Lucas tried.

"_Goddamn it, Lucas! _I don't know what's worse. Finding out that your ex-girlfriend is coming. Or finding out that your ex-girlfriend is coming in a week. What happened to responsibility? Did you leave it in Tree Hill too?"

Keith slammed his hand against the wall, turning his back on him. He could feel the anger radiating in wave of his uncle, but he was unfazed. _She said yes._ The mantra kept chanting clearly in his head.

_She said yes. _

He hadn't meant to blurt out an invitation to Charleston over the phone. Not yet at least. But the sensation of her pulling away had been unbearable really. So much so that he had lost any ounce of control over his emotions and pure desperation had won over. The words had never felt so right.

_She said yes._

He had no idea what he was feeling. One minute it was a total high, a euphoric elation that was wonderfully intoxicating. Another minute it was a complete feeling of nervous dread. He could very well be screwing up any chances with Brooke. Girls like Brooke only entered your life once in every blue moon. Keeping a girl like Brooke meant walking through the proverbial flames of hell.

And he was _very_ willing to do it.

"I want her to come," he spoke, finally interrupting Keith in the middle of his tirade. "I need her to be here, even if it is only just a week. You have to understand, man. I may never get this chance again."

Keith sighed softly, leaning down to help him pick up the broken glass. "So which girl is this?"

"Brooke," he responded quietly. "Brooke Davis."

The girl that had literally moved his world.

"Tattoo girl?" Keith's surprise is not lost on Lucas and he can't help but let a smile cross his lips at the memory of that wild night.

"Tattoo girl," he confirmed. "But she's not always like that. She's— She's very good at hiding who she is. She's amazing Keith... Really amazing."

Keith said nothing and swept the remaining broken glass into a plastic bag. Lucas sighed. He was thinking about his mom. He wasn't stupid. He knew what was going on between Keith and his mom. He had grown to recognize the looks of unrequited love that his uncle bestowed only on his mother. Looks that she was always desperate to ignore.

It was because of Keith and his mom that he wanted to get this right.

Losing Brooke because of his own stupidity was not an option.

"Well," Keith's voice broke him from his musings. "Since she's already coming... I just want to make one thing clear to you though, Luke."

"What?"

"You do realize that we have lawn chairs for furniture and there's no paint on the walls. And oh wait, you sleep on a mattress and some sheets. You really think she's going to be impressed by this?"

Lucas took a long glance around the room, at the unpacked boxes and empty pizza boxes, and sighed. _Shit._ He dropped the broom and dustpan and buried his face in his hands. _Shit._

Keith laughed. "Luke, Luke, Luke. Did ya think for a moment that I'd leave you to fend for yourself in obviously major situation such as the one you've managed to tangle yourself in?"

"Yes."

"Well, I probably would," his uncle responded with a lop-sided grin. The older man began to sort through some of the boxes close to the kitchen. "But since you're the closest thing I'll get to a kid and this is _that_ _girl_, I'm going to be nice. Only because I love you and all."

Lucas grinned in response. His excitement could be barely contained. She was coming. He still had a chance. Everything would be okay.

"Lucas?"

"Yeah?" He threw what looked to be like old socks to the ground near the mound of trash that needed to be thrown away.

"She is that girl, isn't she?"

He said nothing. Brooke was that girl. The girl who he saw in his dreams at night. The girl whose smile haunted him every time he closed his eyes. Brooke was _that_ girl that almost got away.

"Yeah," he responded quietly. "She's _that_ girl."

A haunted look passed through Keith's eyes and the older man placed a large hand on his shoulders. Lucas swallowed nervously.

"You deserve to be happy, Lucas," he whispered. "But remember. You may never get this chance again."

_I know_, he thought. _And that's what scares me the most._

TBC 

**A/N**: Thank you. Thank you. I'm so pleased with the response to this little story of mine! So thank you again. I can't say that enough. Just keep reviewing is all that I ask.

A little shorter than I wanted it to be, but the next chapter will make up for it. I promise.

And now for some review responses:

**Ann**: I like Brooke a lot. In fact the moment I started watching OTH, I knew Brooke was going to be my favorite character. I tend to go for the characters that seem to hide a lot of themselves. I'm going to be toying with her character a lot more. As for Luke and Peyton? Don't worry. They haven't gotten off so easily. It's going to be a rocky road to happiness for Lucas and Brooke. And Peyton, well I've never liked or hated her, but I've always thought of her as a roadblock.

**KT**: Thanks. Peyton isn't really my favorite obviously. However I am interested in the motivations behind her friendship with Brooke and vice versa. I will tell you though that I'm going to rely heavily on my little hypotheses.

**Serious Fan**: Ah, the parents. Brooke's parents are going to be tackled much later in the fic and it's not going to be pleasant. But a lot of things are going to be revealed about Brooke and what _I _think her character should be about. If it were a perfect world I'd own the show and Brooke and Lucas and Keith and Karen would be together. But alas, I must settle for fanfiction.

**Maroonieee**: Well, I did end up turning this into a much longer story. I hope you're happy because you're partly responsible for me continuing. Lucas will never forget that cheating on Brooke was the biggest mistake of his life. There's going to be an abundant amount of groveling.


	4. Tuesdays

_I am a man  
Cut from the know  
rarely do friends  
Come and then go  
She was a girl  
Soft but estranged  
we were the two  
our lives rearranged..._

_Breaking the Girl, the Red Hot Chili Peppers _

**The Makings of a Resolution**

LUCAS HAD LEFT on a Tuesday.

Her French AP was on that Friday morning, her AP Literature and European History had followed the week after on Monday and Thursday respectively. But all she could think about was Charleston and leaving... and Lucas, Charleston, leaving— It occupied her mind in a nauseating circle.

Today however was Tuesday.

She was leaving on a Tuesday and was desperately trying to fight her romantic beliefs in serendipity. She was a practical girl who should be worrying about her AP scores and the big ballet recital that was coming up in the end of July. She should be worrying about missing dance practice and the chances of her parents taking their bi-yearly interest in her life so that they could call themselves _parents_. Her brain should be fried with characters and dates and verbs and stress.

But it wasn't.

She had spent two long weeks preoccupied with nothing but this trip. Her heart couldn't let go of Lucas and Charleston for even just a minute. And right now, she was a mess of nerves because Karen, Lucas' mother, was dropping her off at the airport.

Brooke didn't understand why she agreed to the older woman's suggest of company to the airport. She had a feeling that Lucas had suggested it to his mother, but the meeting between the two of them had been no less than awkward and very brief. The hospital had been a bad place for the both of them.

A combination of Lucas' quiet begging and Karen's insistence pushed her to agree to Karen's offer, against all her logic and reasoning.

"Do you want me to wait with you before you head down to the gate? It's a little early."

Brooke was startled out of her thoughts, but then shrugged. She was not entirely comfortable with Karen's attempt of being kind. The older woman's genuine concern caused a heart-wrenching twist of her heart.

"No," she responded quietly. "I don't want to hold you up or anything. I'm no stranger to airports. My parents have certainly shipped me off more times than I care to remember. I'll— I'll be fine."

Karen placed a gentle arm around her shoulder. "I'm not going to leave you here alone, Brooke. I'm the frazzled, worried type. This isn't good for my blood pressure."

A tentative smile found its way across her lips. She couldn't help the feelings of warmth and comfort that rose with Karen's decree. Her own mother could even say something like this to her.

"I'm sorry," she confessed. "I'm just so used to doing everything by myself. My parents... My parents left me to fend for myself at an early age. I had to learn how to do this all by default."

"It must have been hard."

Brooke didn't miss the look of mixed pity that crossed her face. Spotting a couple chairs outside the makeshift coffee shop before security, she motioned Karen to follow. Placing her shoulder bag on the ground, she sat and began to talk again.

"I was seven when I began to understand that my parents didn't _want to be_ parents," she trailed off quietly. "How could I not? My nanny barely spoke a word of English. But I learned quickly, I guess. Don't get me wrong, I occasionally disillusion myself on birthdays and holidays. The truth is they're really just like any other stranger on the street."

Karen leaned forward. "I'm sorry for—"

Brooke shook her head, her hair falling into her eyes. She fumbled nervously with her cell phone. "It's fine, Ms. Roe—"

"Call me Karen," the older woman interrupted. "Ms. Roe makes me feel way too old."

"All right, Karen," she mumbled. "Don't worry about bringing my parents up. It's a question that I should be getting used to by now."

Karen's eyes softened and she reached over, taking Brooke's hand in her own. "You're a strong girl, Brooke. Lucas was right about you."

She blushed at the compliment against her will. "I'm glad we had this time... to talk and all," she confessed quietly.

"I'm glad too, Brooke," Karen replied. "Especially under these circumstances."

Brooke said nothing but flashed a small smile. Lucas' accident seemed to still be a shaky and terrible memory for the both of them, especially since it was the escalated start of her turbulent relationship with Lucas.

Would Charleston be enough of a start to repair the scars?

"I think it's time for me to go through the security check and to my gate," she said finally, checking her watch.

"All right."

Both women stood, Brooke silently gathering her purse and book for the plane ride to Charleston. _Charleston. Am I making the right choice?_

She swallowed.

_Why didn't I say no?_

"You have a safe trip," Karen murmured as Brooke handed her identification and boarding pass to the security guard.

This was really happening.

Brooke prepared herself to enter what could possibly be the most surreal week of her life, but was thrown into a moment of emotional disarray when Karen pulled her into a hug.

"You take care of my son," she whispered. "And... And Keith too. Please make sure that the apartment is at least half-way furnished."

"I will," she murmured with a shaky smile.

"And call me too," Karen added. "Let me know that you got in okay."

Brooke bit back tears and forced herself to swallow to regain some semblance of emotional control. The real concern in Karen's eyes was making her an emotional mess.

"I— I will."

_I'll try. This is my heart I'm risking._

_TBC_

**A/N**: Thank you so much, guys! I'm so happy with all the reviews I'm getting for this story. It makes my stressful week a great start. College sucks I'll tell you, but the OTH season premiere is in one week so I think I'll manage.

Up next: Brooke. Lucas. The airport. A phone call.


	5. Serendipity

_So familiar and overwhelmingly warm  
This one, this form I hold now.  
Embracing you, this reality here,  
This one, this form I hold now, so  
Wide eyed and hopeful.  
Wide eyed and hopefully wild._

_Parabol, Tool_

**The Makings of A Resolution**

LUCAS WAS nervous.

He _was_ really nervous. He was the kind of nervous that you got before a big game or even the first day of school... times hundred. He had never been _this_ scared in his entire life. He didn't want to screw this up, like the countless of things he had before. Charleston was a second chance at finding himself and at getting Brooke back into his life. He didn't, no, couldn't lose Brooke. Losing her again was not an option.

He was petrified.

The invitation had been nothing more than a result of desperation but had turned into what he had hoped to be a good thing. He knew that Brooke was apprehensive about this trip-- They talked almost every day after that conversation. Yet, he could help but be _hopeful_. This was a tentative start, Brooke was slowly starting to open herself back up to him and restoring a foundation of trust in _them_.

The days that followed seemed to be unbearably long. He couldn't stop thinking about Brooke. For him, her voice hadn't been enough. He needed to _see_ her, he didn't want to do this by memory anymore.

He couldn't believe that this day was really.

He sighed and went to the schedule screens. Brooke's flight had just arrived and with a call from his mother, he knew she was here. This day, _this week,_ could really make or break the two of them. That was what scared him the most.

He just wanted to see her.

Lucas found himself watching the people around him. Two little boys and their pregnant mother reuniting with a very weary but excited husband and father. Grandparents were being greeted by their grandkids. A very eager couple reunited passionately in the corner. He wondered if it were wishful thinking... He wanted to get back to that point too.

Then he saw her.

Brooke stood on the descending escalator, clutching her purse in one hand and her cell phone in the other against her ear. She seemed even more beautiful than before and he took in the sight of her like a starving man. He frowned at the look of frustrated weariness that crossed her features and wondered who was on the other line.

Her dark brown hair framed her face and her coffee-colored eyes searched the masses of people for him and _only_ him. A small smile of amusement mixed with a posessive pleasure crossed his lips as he realized that she was wearing his old _Scott Body Shop_ sweatshirt.

"Brooke!"

She looked up from her phone, a ghost of a smile fitting across her lips. He took a small step towards her, unsure of how to appoarch her when a frown marred her features.

"I'm not disappointed, Dad," she spoke quietly into the phone. "I should be used to it now."

He raised an eyebrow in concern. _Dad? Parents? _They never talked about her parents. He was worried now. She looked very tired and somewhat troubled.

Brooke seemed to read his thought and shook her head, mouthing an _I'm okay_.

"Sure. I promise. I'll call you on Thursday. You have a safe trip."

With trembling hands she snapped her phone shut and gave him a tiny smile. She took a deep breath and he bit his lip nervously.

"Hey handsome," she greeted softly.

He said nothing, reaching for her instead. He couldn't contain himself and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing the crown of her forehead.

"You're really here," he murmured into her hair, inhaling the rose vanilla perfume she always wore. "You're _really_ here."

Brooke pulled back and met his gaze. He swallowed under the intensity of her eyes. Her lips were trembling. Now he was really worried.

"Brooke," Lucas prodded gently. "Hey. You okay?"

His heart was pounding against his chest like a jackhammer. Had something happened? Was she having regrets about coming?

"Now I am," she whispered, burying herself in his embrace. His arms tightened around her waist.

"Now I am."

**A/N: **You guys are wonderful. Really. Keep those reviews coming. They really make my day in the midst of the stress known as school.

I got an interesting email the other day and I just want to answer the question quickly. Will the new season affect **The Makings of a Resolution**? It depends really. I might incorporate some things into the story, but other than that not really.

Up Next: Keith lays down the law and Brooke opens up just a little more to Lucas.


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